


Sunrise Over Brooklyn

by orphan_account



Category: Newsies (1992), Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: Apartment AU, F/M, did not edit because i am trash, fluff and sex and everything in between, probably set in the mid-90s who knows
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-22
Updated: 2015-05-22
Packaged: 2018-03-31 16:25:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,869
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3984874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Katherine Plumber moves in to her first apartment the summer after graduating college and meets the boy next door.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

This could work. This could definitely work. A one-room apartment, paper-thin walls, only one working light and a bathroom with touch-and-go plumbing. There were cracks in the ceiling, cracks on the floor, and cracks in the rust on the fire escape that didn't seem sturdy enough to hold a pigeon. All of this, nestled deep in the heart of Brooklyn. Kat could get used to this. At least, that's what she told herself while slowly examining her new living quarters. Fresh out of small-town college, she finally got the ovaries to follow her dream and move to the big city. And now she was here. And now it was all sinking in.  
She sunk to the floor, leaning against the frame of her bed. This seemed like an opportune moment to burst in to tears, but none would come. All she could do was stare straight ahead, at the spiderweb of cracks blossoming by the thin wood of the door. There was a sizable gap between the bottom of the door and the floor, and Kat couldn't help but picture all sorts of horrifying things crawling under her door in the middle of the night - both real and nightmare-ish.  
There was a knock on the door. Kat screamed, and the door screamed back. Or, the man behind the door, that is.  
"You okay in there?" The man called out. She could hear the Brooklyn in his voice.  
"Yeah, you just startled me," Kat said, scrambling to her feet. She threw open the door before she could consider the negative consequences to opening your door to strangers in a strange city.  
"Sorry for scaring you," The man said, and Kat took a deep breath. This. This was an attractive man. A side-grin, a sweep of dark hair, grey eyes like a storm and a heart-melting gaze. And abs. This man was wearing nothing but old, dirty jeans, like some kind of lower class Abercrombie & Fitch model.  
"Oh, no problem," Kat responded easily. "Um, can I help you with something?"  
"Yeah, I was just wondering if you happened to have any bandages?" He held up a calloused hand sporting a long cut across the palm. "I'm fresh out."  
"Oh, uh, yeah, actually. I think Band Aids are one of the few things I do have," Kat said, heading for her bathroom. She stopped to look at the man still standing in the doorway. "You can come in. I'm Katherine, by the way, but you can call me Kat."  
"Jack," Kat heard him say as she rummaged through the first aid kit in her bathroom. "You're oddly hospitable for a girl living on her own in the city."  
"I guess it's because I'm not from the city," Kat said, handing the bandage to him as she tried to avoid looking directly at his abs. "I'm from Wisconsin."  
"Wisconsin, huh?" He raised his eyebrows while applying the bandage. "What made you move to Brooklyn?"  
"I always wanted to move to the big city, I guess I'm just cliche like that," Kat said with a chuckle.  
"Want to be an actress or something?"  
"No, a journalist."  
"Oh, really?" He asked. "That's not cliche."  
"Yeah, I guess not," Kat said. She felt like the conversation was about to end, but she didn't want it to. "And, uh, how about you?"  
Jack shrugged. "Odd jobs. Whatever I can get, really."  
"Oh, I see."  
There was a pause, punctuated by a siren roaring by on the street outside. "Well, thanks for the bandage," Jack said.  
"You're lucky that's the only thing my mom thought I would need while moving to my own apartment," Kat joked. "I don't have any food, but I've got an ample supply of Neosporin."  
"No food?" Jack asked.  
"Oh, I've got some trail mix in my bag, I can survive tonight before heading to the grocery store tomorrow."  
"Wanna have dinner with me?"  
Kat's heart stopped in her chest. She never really caught the interest of boys in Wisconsin, but her first day in New York and a handsome stranger wanted to have dinner with her. Or he wanted to drug her and hold her prisoner in his apartment. She figured in the future she would have to be less trusting of random strangers.  
"Um, that's a very nice offer, but I think I'm gonna stay in tonight. Thank you though, maybe another time."  
"Right, another time," Jack nodded, and Kat was disappointed at the lack of disappointment in his voice. He started out the door, then stopped to flash one last smile. "Nice to meet you, Kat."  
"Nice to meet you, Jack."  
The door closed, and Kat smiled to herself in her lonely little apartment.


	2. Chapter 2

Kat slammed the door shut to her apartment and leaned against the wall, groaning loudly to herself. She hated interviews, and she hated talking to people, and she hated wearing her one nice dress and heels. She fumbled with the straps of her heels before throwing them dramatically across the room, leaving a mark as they slammed against the wall. Kat groaned again. She desperately wanted the internship at the Post, or the Times, or any newspaper, really. And she desperately needed any job, whatsoever. She would probably have to serve Starbucks to make ends meet. But what she really needed, at that moment, was alcohol. Strong. Alcohol.   
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.  
"Who is it?" Kat called out, making no effort to hide the weariness in her voice.  
"Jack," The voice called back. It had been about a week since she rejected his dinner proposal, and this didn't seem like a good time to see the handsome boy next door again.  
"Sorry, now's not a good time."  
"Ok. I just heard groaning and thumping and I wanted to make sure everything was okay."  
Right. Paper-thin walls. Kat sighed, smoothed back her hair, and opened the door.  
"Yes, I'm fine, thank you," She said. Jack was not wearing a shirt. Again. "Do you own any shirts?" She asked suddenly, and was too tired to reprimand herself for being so foreward.  
"Not when it's a hundred degrees outside," Jack said with a cocky grin. He was definitely the kind of boy who took pride in his abs. Gross. "How are you wearing tights? I'd burn up."  
"I went on interviews for internships today," Kat explained. "I had to look professional."  
"How'd the interviews go?"  
"Uh, fine," Kat glanced down at her wrist and realized she wasn't wearing a watch. "I'm kind of tired, though, so I think I'm just going to take a nap or something. Thanks for, uh, checking on me, I guess."  
"Anytime, Kat," He said with a smile. He leaned against the doorframe for a second, then slowly turned to leave.  
"Wait," Kat called. Jack was back immediately, leaning his arm against the doorframe and smiling. Kat smiled tiredly, in spite of herself. "You wouldn't happen to have...beer, or anything, would you?"  
Jack laughed. "Interviews that bad, huh?"  
"Well..."  
"You don't seem like you've drank a day in your life."  
"Once or twice, in college," Kat sighed. "Sorry I asked, I just had a rough day."  
"No, it's okay. I think I have something for you. I'll be right back."  
Jack left, and Kat felt her heart starting pounding out a dangerous rhythym. She just invited a man over to her apartment to drink. She was barely even drinking age. Where did this new personality come from? Kat would have to consider this while she put on some new close, because the tights were starting to feel like boa constrictors. She stirpped quickly and threw on a pair of jean shorts, searching for a tank top while in her bra.  
"Oh, uh, sorry," Jack said, and Kat turned around before realizing she was standing there in her bra. Before she could react, he turned around, still holding two cans of beers. "Sorry. Uh...sorry."  
Kat giggled, just a little, before pulling on a tank top. "You can turn around now," She teased, and when Jack turned around she saw that he was blushing. She didn't know a man like this could blush, but maybe he was more modest now. He had put on a t-shirt.  
"Um, here," Jack handed her the can. "Your finest cheap beer."  
"Thank you, so much," Kat popped open the can and took a swig. It was the worst thing she had ever tasted, worse than vodka shots at the one party she attended in her four years of college. But it made her feel better, in its own weird way, and she wanted to keep drinking. She took another sip and looked up at Jack. He was laughing at her. "What?" She asked.  
"Your making a face," He said, and Kat realize then that her nose was wrinkled and her mouth was pursed. She unscrewed her face and sighed.  
"I guess I'm not a big beer fan," She said. "But it's undoing the knot in my stomach, so that's good, I guess."  
"Yeah, that's good, I guess," Jack said, and took a drink from his own can. They were standing there, then, uncomfortably. Kat wished she had some more furniture in her apartment. There was just a bed, a desk, a chair, and a microwave plugged in on the floor. There were piles of clothes and other random items scattered around the room, and she felt more self-conscious than she ever felt about her living space before.  
"Did you...need to talk about something?"  
Kat snapped out of her stupor. "No, uh, sorry. Yeah, I guess I just spaced out there? Huh...it's just been a long day...long, tiring day..." Kat couldn't believe that she was still talking.  
"No worries. I'll get out of your hair."  
"Oh, um..." Kat said, and Jack stopped to look at her. Please stay, Kat wanted to say. But she didn't. "Thanks. For...the beer."  
"Anytime," Jack said, and his smile was smaller this time. Was he disappointed that she didn't ask him to stay? Was Kat disappointed that he was leaving?  
"I'll see you around?"  
"See you around."  
Jack closed the door behind him.


	3. Chapter 3

Kat stood at the bottom of the stairs to her apartment. One week of her job at The Times and she felt like a shell of a girl. Running to get coffee, running to get files, running to get lunch...Kat never had a chance to sit down or even stop. And it didn't seem like she'd do any actual reporting anytime soon. One step at a time, she reminded herself. She'll get there someday.  
But the next step she needed to take was up the stairs, and her fatigue told her that wouldn't happen any day soon.  
"Ugghhhhhh..." Kat let out a long, defeated groan.  
"You alright?"  
Kat turned around. She hadn't seen Jack in a week, and here he was again. He must have just come back from a job - his jeans were caked in plaster and sweat glistened on his forehead. He had the same smile on his face, and it made Kat's already weak knees weaker.  
"Just came back from work," She replied. "And I can't seem to get myself up the stairs."  
"You got the internship?" Jack's face lit up, and it threw Kat off guard. She didn't know that he cared so much.  
"Uh, yeah. New York Times."  
"That's great!" Jack said, and Kat smiled, feeling pride swell in her chest.  
"Yeah, I'm pretty excited about it," She laughed a little. "I know one day I can do something more meaningful than fetch coffee and sandwiches."  
Jack put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, you'll be an ace reporter in no time."  
Kat laughed. "Ace reporter? This isn't the 20's."  
"You're still an ace to me."  
There was a pause. It was different than the one a week a go. Less uncomfortable and more...like holding your breath. Waiting for something to begin. Not knowing what that something might be.  
At least, that's what it felt like to Kat. Jack was blushing pink, and he cleared his throat to bring a sudden halt to the silence. "You said you couldn't get up the stairs?"  
Kat shook her head. "Oh, uh, no, I'm alright," She stammered. Jack had clearly spent all day engaging in rough physical labor for probably half of what Kat was earning for doing errands. And now she was claiming to be too tired to just get up to her apartment. "I'm just being lazy."  
"I could give you a lift," Jack said with a mischievous smile, and before Kat could ask what he meant she was swept up in his arms, bridal style. She yelped and grasped around his neck, then laughed breathlessly.  
"Do you want me to put you down?" Jack asked.  
"Uh-uh," Kat shook her head, and suddenly Jack was carrying her upstairs like she weighed nothing at all. She laughed all the way up to the fifth floor, and when he finally put her down in front of her apartment she was still laughing. Jack's breathing sounded a little heavier, but he didn't show any other signs of fatigue, just a grin on his face.  
"Well, thanks for that," Kat said, back pressed up against the door. "I should head inside now."  
"You don't have to," Jack said, and he stood a little closer to her.  
"No, I guess I don't..." Kat moved a little closer to him. They were almost a breath away from each other, just watching in waiting silence. Kat could feel herself moving in, and Jack started moving in, too.  
And that was when the door to his apartment was thrown open.


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey, Jack, you done out here?"  
There was another man standing at the door of the apartment. No, two. Three. Four? Who knows. They were all standing in the doorway in various stages of undress, and with the way they were watching Kat, even in a skirt and blouse she felt the need to cover up.   
"Oh, I didn't know you had roommates," Kat said. He did have the bigger apartment on the floor, but Kat never thought of how he made the money to pay the extra rent.  
"Less like roommates and more like freeloaders," Jack said, and gave the guys in the doorway a look to send them inside.  
"Rude," One of them scoffed, and turned around to disappear into the apartment.  
"I thought you gave up on this girl," The blonde one said. "She finally coming around?"  
"I'm standing right here."  
"Dave, shut up," The brunette one snapped. He looked like the youngest, maybe only eighteen or nineteen. "Hey, Jack, give it up already. Even if she does come around, bet's up. It's been over a week."  
"Bet?" Kat asked Jack, and out of the corner of her eye she saw the blonde one hitting the brunette one on the arm. "What bet?"  
"It's nothing, they're kidding -"  
"Might as well tell her Jack, not like you have a chance with her now anyway."  
Kat shook her head. "Wait. This wasn't some kind of bet to see how long it would take for you to get in my pants or something, was it?"  
Jack was silent. The guys in the doorway murmured something to each other. "I can't believe this," Kat's voice was biting. "What are you, in high school? Is this one of those teen movies I used to hate? You've just been trying to win a bet?"  
"Yeah, and he hasn't been trying too hard, it seems," The brunette one said. "We keep trying to hear your conversations when he goes to your apartment, and they always only last a minute. He was too nervous to even try talking to you more than once or twice."  
"Listen, I didn't mean for this to..." Jack stammered. "I mean, I never wanted you to -"  
"Find out?" Kat spat. "Right, of course, how thoughtful of you. Maybe next time instead of keeping secrets you should grow up and find a way to treat people like human beings."  
"Kat, please -"  
"We were just trying to have some fun. Didn't want to hurt anyone."  
"Shut up, Dave."  
"I'm just trying to help..."  
Kat didn't want to hear anymore. She unlocked the door to her apartment, slipped in, and slammed it shut before anyone could stop her. Jack knocked on her door a few times, trying to get her to talk, but she wouldn't hear it. She heard angry talking, doors slamming, the muffled sounds of argument. Kat slumped to the ground, and though she wanted to cry, she didn't let herself.  
Katherine Plumber would never cry over a dumb boy.


	5. Chapter 5

One week passed. Kat still had a meaningless job, the boy next door was still a jackass, and her apartment was still next to his. She had hoped that, after a long night of strong "giving up" feelings, she would find the courage to pull herself back up by her bootstraps and trudge dutifully forward. Her job would get better, there was room left to grow, and if she kept smiling and punctual it could only help her chances of becoming a reporter. The boy next door was simply childish, a person who didn't consider other people's feelings until he played games with them. He and his friends were just playing a game, and in time they would forget about her and she would forget about them. Kat suspected that she grew so attached just out of her need for a friend: she was alone in a big city, and she needed someone to be there. Unfortunately, even psychological rumination doesn't quell a bruised heart, and she still found a sour taste in her mouth when she passed his door on the way down the stairs each morning.  
One morning she turned so quickly from the sight of it that she almost knocked someone down the stairs. Someone who happened to be on crutches.  
"Oh, God, I am so sorry," Kat exclaimed, instinctively reaching out to grab the boy's shoulders and keep him from tumbling back down a flight of stairs.   
"Eh, don't worry about it," The boy said with a shrug and a lopsided grin. He tossed some blonde hair out of his eyes; he must have been about nineteen, but his eyes were wide and childish. "Happens all the time."  
"Oh, um, well, I'm sorry," She stammered. "I'll try to be more careful."  
She started down the stairs, cheeks burning. "Wait a minute," the boy called, and Kat turned around. "You're that girl..." The boy narrowed his eyes. "Kat? Right?"  
"Um, yeah. Have we met before?"  
"No, I've just heard about you."  
Kat raised her eyebrows. "You've heard about me?"  
"I live with Jack."  
Kat clenched her jaw. He was one of them. "Oh, great, yeah, ok, I really have to go now, but nice talking to you."  
Kat started hurrying down the stairs again and made it to the first landing before the boy called out to her again.  
"Hey, wait up," He panted; he was maneuvering his way down the stairs on his crutches, moving relatively fast for someone who was without the use of one leg. When he reached the landing, he leaned against the wall.  
"You're really fast on those," Kat remarked. "How'd you hurt your leg?"  
"Oh, it's been hurt for a while now," The boy waved off. "But I wanted to talk to you about something."  
"Hey, I'm over it, alright?" Kat said sharply. "I don't want to talk to or about Jack ever again, so we can just -"  
"Jack's an asshole."  
"I'm listening."  
"He's an asshole," The boy sighed, "Because it's just his defense. He doesn't want to get his feelings hurt."  
Kat rolled her eyes. "Alright, I get it, one of them sent you to get a pity date out of me, but I'm not buying it. I don't care what you tell me about him, I'm not interested."  
"Just hear me out, 'kay?" The boy ran his hands through his hair, letting it fall in front of his eyes again. Kat didn't stop him, so he kept talking. "Nobody sent me here, if they knew I was doing this they'd probably kill me. Jack's a jerk, yes, but he really does like you. The whole thing was a misunderstanding...the guys saw him fawning over you the day you moved in and set up the whole 'bet.' He would have never agreed, but he was...embarrassed, I guess. It wasn't meant to hurt your feelings, he really does like you."   
Kat pursed her lips. "Well, that's a very touching story, but I'm still not interested. He'll just have to get over it, like I did."  
Kat, feeling like that was a good exit line, turned on her heel and stormed away.  
"You won't at least think about it?" The boy called. Kat didn't turn back.


	6. Chapter 6

Kat was woken up at one in the morning to the sound of panicked knocking on her door. Her heart leapt up to her throat and her jaw clenched with each pound that echoed through the darkened apartment. Swallowing her fear, she edged out of the bed, grabbed the baseball bat her dad had left her, and carefully approached the door. The knocking stopped suddenly and Kat waited, breathing heavily.  
"Kat?" It was a voice she recognized, the boy with the crutches. She exhaled, but her heart continued to beat like an aggressive drummer. She unlocked the door and saw the boy standing there, wearing pajamas and leaning against his crutches, blonde hair still obscuring one eye.  
"What the hell are you doing here this early?" Kat whispered harshly, afraid to wake up any other tennants.  
"Sorry, sorry to wake you up, but it's an emergency," He said, breathing heavily, and Kat could hear the panic in his voice. It caused her heart to seize up again - she couldn't deal with emergencies, not now, not ever.  
"What, what's wrong?" She asked.  
"Jack said that you could help -" He started, and Kat started closing the door on him. Before she could slam it shut, though, the boy jammed his crutch in the gap. Kat sighed and opened the door again.  
"I don't care about your friend. He can figure out your own problems."  
"He was beat up real bad on the way home," The boy said. "He's all bruised and bleeding...he said that you might be able to help."  
Kat clenched her teeth and took a breath. She turned abruptly and in to the bathroom, returning with the first aid kit. "Here. There's a bunch of medical supplies in there, just bring it back when you're done. Actually, no, keep it. God knows he needs it more than I do."  
The boy grimaced at the sight of the kit and looked up at Kat, seemingly embarassed. "I'm so sorry to ask, but Davey and Les aren't home and I really don't know what I'm doing with this stuff -"  
"I'm not playing nurse, figure it out yourself."  
"Please...he's really hurt."  
Kat sighed. She mumbled a curse under her breath and allowed the boy with crutches to lead her in to the apartment next door. It was a little bigger than hers, a couple of other rooms jut off from the main one, but it was still cramped for four grown men. Pizza boxes, milk cartons, laundry both clean and dirty, receipts, and assorted personal items littered every available surface. None of the lights were on, the only source of light came from the moon glowing through a window, illuminating the boy sitting slumped over in a dining room chair.  
"Jesus Christ," Kat whispered under her breath as she approached the damaged figure of Jack Kelly. He was sporting a black eye and a split lip, along with a Rorsharch pattern of bruises and cuts blossoming over his skin. He looked only half awake, and when he saw Kat he barely registered it.  
"How did this happen?" Kat asked the boy, and for some reason at that moment she realized she still didn't know his name.  
"He went to the store to pick up some stuff, and some guys must've jumped him," The boy explained. "I don't know how he made it up here all by himself."  
"He needs to get to the hospital," Kat said. "I'll go call 911 -"  
"We don't exactly have the money for a trip to the hospital," The boy said. "Not like we can afford insurance, either."  
"Well..." Kat tried to think of some kind of solution. She didn't have any. She sighed again, cursed again, and went to the freezer in the nearby kitchenette.  
"What are you doing?" The boy asked, watching Kat wrap a few icecubes in what she hoped was a clean t-shirt from the counter.  
"He needs a cold compress for that eye," Kat said. She handed the bundle to Jack and carefully lifted his hand to his eye. "Keep it pressed on there, but be gentle," She said softly to him, and he nodded and obliged. She returned to the kitchen where she found a paper towel and dampened it in the sink. She started gently blotting away the blood on his lip. She could feel him watching her with his one good eye, was painfully aware of his chest rising and falling. But she had more important things to deal with - namely, getting Jack to a stable condition and getting back to bed. She started cleaning out the cuts on his arm, sopping up blood and being as gentle as possible around the bruises. She heard him grimace and suck air through his teeth when she reached sensitive spots, but he didn't protest. In movies Kat had seen clips where a woman started cleaning the blood from a young man's wounds, and they never played up the gore as much as they should. She had to get several more paper towels before enough of the blood was cleaned off that a bandage would stick. By the time she was carefully pressing bandages to the wounds, the boy with the crutches had returned to his room, and Jack looked a little more cleaned up, despite the rich indigo bruises on his face and arms.  
"Thanks," Jack murmured, the first thing he had said all night. Kat looked up at him while wiping off stray blood around his chin. They locked eyes for a second, and Kat dropped her gaze back to his jawline.  
"Careful when you talk, you could open up your lip again," Kat said softly. Jack said nothing. After a few moments of silence Kat balled up the towel and threw it away. She glanced over Jack again and nodded. "You should be alright for now. I'll leave the first aid kit so you can change your bandages."  
He watched her set the first aid kit down. She watched him watch her. They were staring at each other for a minute, Jack bruised and bloody with one eye, Kat standing there with her braid falling out and a wrinkled tank top and pajama bottoms. She shuffled her feet. "Uh, I've been meaning to ask..." She mumbled, "What's that boy's name? The one with the crutches?"   
Jack chuckled a little to himself. "He just has us call him Crutchie."  
Kat raised her eyebrows. "You don't know his real name?"  
"I don't know a lot about my roommates," He said with a small smile. "We're all a little down and out, to say the least, and we're just trying to help each other out until we can get on our own two feet. He wants us to call him Crutchie, we call him Crutchie, and don't ask any questions."  
"He's had crutches since I've known him. He won't say why, I don't ask."  
"I see." Kat said. She took a deep breath. She could feel fatigue settling in again and remembered the time. "I should...uh...get home. Be careful...you don't want to get hurt again." "Be a shame if you had to come take care of me again," Jack said with a cocky grin. Kat just chuckled and shook her head.  
"Glad to see that you're feeling back to your old self," She said, and started out the door again. She stopped, and turned around again. "Those guys who hurt you...did they take anything?"  
Jack glanced at the floor. "About twenty bucks and some groceries. Nothing else, but I guess they didn't know that before they beat me up. Expected me to follow them, I guess." "I'm sorry, Jack."  
"I'll get over it."  
Kat just nodded. She didn't know what else to say. She didn't know what else to do. "Goodnight," She said quickly, and closed the door. She took yet another deep breath in the hallway, feeling her heart beat slow to a normal pace for the first time that night.


	7. Chapter 7

It was the hottest day ever. Kat had never experienced this kind of heat, and she didn't want to experience it again. Especially since she had nowhere to go and no money to do anything. She had been sitting on the edge of her bed for an hour, staring blankly at the television in nothing but shorts and a bra, trying to convince herself to be a rational person and not rip her hair out of her head or strip completely nude and run down the street. She was bored and hot and tired. There was nothing on TV either, the news was just talking about "record heat waves." Kat wished ice cream trucks would come to her neighborhood. And that it was socially acceptable for adults to run out and buy ice cream.  
"Hey, Kat, you in there?" A voice called from behind the door. It was Jack. Kat sighed and opened the door. She was just about to feel self-conscious about being in her bra, but it was too hot to care. And, besides, Jack wasn't wearing a shirt again, either. Just a pair of cargo shorts.  
"Hey, you're looking better," Kat remarked. The bruises were starting to fade and a few of the cuts had healed. He still had a black eye and a few cuts around his mouth, though.  
"Still not feelin' too great," he said with a shrug. "You really helped me, though."  
"Well, it's what neighbors do," she shrugged. "Uh, did you need help with anything?"  
"I just, uh, wanted to give you a proper thank you for a few nights ago. I was kinda out of it before. So, thanks."  
"Well, you're welcome."  
Kat stood uncomfortably for a minute. Jack stood uncomfortably back at her. They both started talking at the same time.  
"So -"  
"Uh -"  
Kat laughed awkwardly, Jack half-smiled, also awkwardly. "Go ahead," Kat said, and Jack nodded and cleared his throat.  
"So, uh, I just wanted to say that...I was dumb, and stupid, and I shouldn't have -"  
"You don't have to," Kat shook her head. "We don't have to bring it up again. Okay?"  
"I - okay," he said, and nodded a few times. He ran his hand through his hair, staring down at his shoes. "Hey, so, I was wondering if you might wanna...I know a good place to, uh, beat the heat -"  
"Sure, why not."  
Jack's eyes widened. "Wait, really?"  
Kat shrugged. "I like giving people second chances," She said. Kat had never once in her life given anyone a second chance. She just really, really wanted to with Jack.  
Jack grinned and ran his hands through the back of his hair again. "Okay, well uh, great! Great, yeah. So, do you wanna..."  
"Should I put a shirt on?"  
"No! Uh, I mean, you could if you want to, but you don't have to, I mean, we're not leaving the building or anything -"  
Kat laughed. "Alright, alright. Show me where it is, before I change my mind."  
Jack nodded before stepping out of the way. "Right this way."  
Kat just smiled a little to herself as she followed Jack up another flight of stairs. He wrenched open a nondescript door on the side wall, revealing a dimly lit stairway. Kat peered up it. "You're not going to murder me, are you?" She asked, and Jack just smiled.  
"Let's hope not, it would really put a damper on our relationship," He joked, and then started up the stairs himself. Kat took a deep breath and followed. He opened another door and a cool breeze rushed towards Kat's face, followed by the first rays of sunset.  
"Is this the roof?" Kat asked, but Jack didn't say anything. He disappeared at the top of the stairs and Kat followed. The rooftop was just like any other apartment rooftop - flat concrete, a handful of trash - but beyond the precarious edge was the beautiful New York skyline. Skyscrapers pierced the setting sun, bleeding gold, orange, red, and pink over the horizon. A few lights were bursting to life in the darkness, and when the breeze blew through the heat was almost bearable. Kat took a deep, cleansing breath, and turned to see Jack holding out a glass bottle.  
"Here," he said, and chuckled at Kat's reluctance to take it. "Don't worry, it's just Coke."  
"Oh," Kat said, and took the bottle. Jack gestured to a make-shift picnic; a couple large towels, a bucket of ice with a few Cokes in it. "You do this all yourself?"  
Jack just winked and sat down, Kat grinning and following suit. She took a swig from the Coke and stared back out at the sky.  
"Do you like it?" Jack asked.  
"It's beautiful," Kat breathed, and Jack nodded.  
"It's not the only thing out here that's beautiful," Jack said. Kat turned to him. She burst out laughing.  
"Did you really just use that line on me?" She said. "Please tell me you did not just use that line on me."  
"Okay, okay," Jack was smiling, but his cheeks were pink. "I'm sorry, I guess I'm not great at this."  
"Oh, come on," Kat rolled her eyes. "You made me fall for you before, I bet you could do it again."  
Jack raised an eyebrow. "You fell for me?"  
"You know I did."  
Jack was silent for a minute, as if he was deep in thought. Suddenly he took Kat's face in his hands and kissed her. Kat figured that if he ever tried that, she would pull away, but she didn't. She kissed him back, just as fiercely. When they finally broke off, Kat's heart was beating like a hummingbird's.  
"Was that okay?" Jack asked, but he seemed nervous. "I shouldn't have done that. Sorry, I don't even know what I was -"  
Kat pulled him in and kissed him back. Jack broke off suddenly.  
"Is everything okay?" Kat asked.  
"Uh, it's just my lip," Jack said. "I'm still a little sore."  
Kat smiled. "I'll be gentle, then," She said. She slowly pushed him on to his back and he grinned as she leaned over him. They kissed softly again, then a little harder, and as they fell in to each other the sky fell below the horizon to bathe New York City in inky black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the lack of editing - I will probably go back and fix it later!


End file.
